Women in Retail Leadership Circle’s stages and screens were littered with amazing speakers throughout the year. From the annual Women in Retail Leadership Summit to members-only Virtual Workshops with experienced career coaches, there are ample opportunities to be inspired.

Throughout the year, the staff at Women in Retail comb through the best snippets from all of our events, workshops, videos, and other content and pull out the quotes we think will inspire you (you can find a quote at the bottom of our newsletter each week!).

Without further ado, I’m pleased to present a completely biased list of our 10 favorite quotes we heard this year from the incredible women leading the retail industry. I hope they inspire you in the new year!

  1. “When I think about a transformational mindset, I like to think about it less as big, radical changes within an organization. I think about it as smaller, incremental steps because those small steps in so many ways can lead to a ripple effect across an organization.” — Sara Wingate Bako, President, London Times 
  2. “Today and going forward, being open to new ideas and change will continue to be a requirement for any leader.” — Emily Essner, Chief Marketing Officer, Saks Fifth Avenue
  3. “You can’t demand that people do things and then expect to have a winning culture.” — Vanessa LeFebvre, Former President, Global Champion and Activewear, Hanesbrands
  4. “Be someone’s shot of whiskey vs. everyone’s cup of tea. Don’t be a pleaser!” — Kelly Cook, President, Brand, Technology and Finance, David’s Bridal
  5. “There’s no better teacher than failure. I’ve learned my most valuable lessons by failing, taking accountability, and trying again with new information.” — Elyse Dickerson, CEO, Eosera
  6. “Women don’t need to be empowered. We need to understand the power that we’ve got, and we need to decide to use that power.” — Sallie Krawcheck, Founder, Ellevest
  7. “Keep driving. Don’t let anyone tell you what you can or cannot do. Make your own decisions and don’t let anyone hold you back.” — Pattie Pfeiffer, Director and General Manager, Fanatics
  8. “You choose your attitude and you choose your mindset. If you wake up and say, ‘I’m going to have a great day today,’ then you’re going to have a great day and make it happen.” — Paula Angelucci, Regional Manager, Field Operations, Burlington Stores
  9. “If you’re not uncomfortable in your transformation journey, you may not be pushing hard enough.” — Annette Dunleavy, Vice President, Brand Marketing, QVC
  10. “Being your authentic self in the context of your personal and psychological being is really just closing the gap between what you feel, what you believe, and what you show the world.” — Odessa “OJ” Jenkins, CEO, Bonfire Women